There was no topping the original merchant. The best you could hope for was just not fucking it up, and I'd say they at least did that.

The outline is basically the same. However there are a lot of differences within that outline from story, gameplay, and level design. Even the familiar areas/segments almost always have a twist to it that keeps you on your toes.

I don't know which ones are the best nowadays, but there are browser extensions that will automatically block youtube videos with certain keywords. I used it a few times in the past right before game releases. Do some research.

each main entry introduces a new world, setting, characters, plot, etc. so you don't have to worry there. there are sequels, but it's made known in the title, such as FFX-2.

i would say do some light research and pick the one that appeals to you. there are pretty varied opinions on FF as a whole and there isn't really a consensus on how best to approach it. if you want my personal opinion, my favorites are 6, 9, and 10.

The first game is a notoriously average. The series doesn't really hit its stride until the 2nd. It's my personal favorite, but people like 3 and 4 a lot too.

I'll give you Godskin Duo. I didn't have any issue with the other bosses though. Maliketh in particular is fucking badass, no idea what your issue is with that one. And even if Elden Beast is on the annoying side, I enjoyed the spectacle of it.

I would also agree the game in general is maybe too big, but the boss repetition didn't bug me too much. Not every catacomb needs a unique fight after all.

The flaws still don't detract from the fact that Elden Ring absorbed me in a way that very few games these days do. Compared to other From games, I'd personally put it above DS2 and DS3, at the very least.

Having the player overcome challenges is a large part of what those games are about, and it's even baked in their atmosphere, design, and themes.

Since this is crucial to those games, I think the better question is how do you keep this vision intact while accommodating people who may not be physically capable of playing it. And I would 100% agree that FromSoftware could do a better job with accessibility options. But if your main concern is giving disabled people more access to play these games, I think you'd have more success tackling this from an input/controller perspective. If a disabled person could play on a controller or device they were comfortable with, the issue would be basically solved right there - especially since these games are not nearly as hard as the community makes them out to be, but maybe that's a separate discussion.

You don't. You take this risk with many other products and services as well. Sometimes you get burned, and that's life.

The best thing you can do is trust a company's reputation. And let's just say that Activision hasn't given me any reason to trust them for the past 10-15 years. Why people still do so, I have no idea. If you enjoy their games, then more power to you. If you find yourself complaining constantly about their releases, then perhaps you should reevaluate your spending choices.